Lesson 10

Henry David Thoreau, “On Civil Disobedience,” 1849.

When a bill is being considered before its committee, there is opportunity for citizens to testify for or against it during the bill’s public hearing. This is an excellent opportunity for citizen engagement to influence the legislators in the committee and to provide an alternative to the typical paid-lobbyist testimony. The problem is knowing when important bills will appear in committee. The answer is to consult the legislative calendar. Most of us need some assistance to do so. We simply lack the time and resources to be legislative gatekeepers. That is where family policy centers can come to our aid for the greater good. Locate your state on Focus on the Family’s Daily Citizen website at dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com/contact-your-state-policy-group.Sign up to receive your state’s policy center’s emails. Ask for more information on testifying in committee and ask if there is a conservative news source that you can follow which monitors the legislature’s work. Young people can make quite an impact at their statehouses by testifying in committee. Note that no one from the public is permitted to testify on the floor of the legislature; that is partly why the committee process is so important. You can make a significant contribution to the formation of your state’s laws by being an informed, engaged young person.Perhaps you could create a paid position within your local political party for someone to be a “bill watcher” and contact others when public testimony opportunities occur.Review FR Chapter 6 for other ways to influence your state government.

See the Nebraska legislature website for more details.

Known as a plural executive; understand each job description from FR 6.5.